Hi, Des Moines. I’m Matt, the new resident music nerd at Juice and the Register. A little about me?

I’m a former-DIY-touring-bassist-dude-gone-music-writer-because-it’s-a-lot-less-dirty and I’ve spent pretty much my entire life playing, promoting, learning about, publicizing, consuming, writing and reporting music. It’s the only thing that’s ever made sense with no questions asked and it’s an artistic endeavor unlike any other on planet Earth.

I want to dig into all of Iowa’s music, from the Missouri to Mississippi River; I want to hear all genres of music, from reggae to rockabilly; I want to catch shows at every venue, from arenas to open mic nights. If you’re an artist: Shoot me a copy of your record, tell me about your show. Let’s talk about what you’re doing.

When not craving local beer, watching the Kansas City Royals’ second pennant run in as many years or scouring record stores, here are 5 shows you’ll find me at this fall. Come say “hello.”

Taylor Swift at Wells Fargo Arena, Oct. 8: What does Taylor Nation have in store for Wells Fargo? I may or may not have a countdown clock on my phone set in anticipation until the minute she takes the stage next month.

Cursive at Vaudeville Mews, Oct. 9: Songwriting doesn’t come much finer than Tim Kasher’s work with Cursive. Mix his ability to entrance a crowd with the spectacular setting at Vaudeville Mews for a show that has the potential not to be forgotten any time soon.

Andrew W. K. at Vaudeville Mews, Oct. 17: It’s time again to party hard with this tenured purveyor of positivity. You’ll also catch me at his Music University keynote lecture earlier that day.

MC Lars at Wooly’s, Nov. 2: There’s...there’s just never a dull moment when Lars takes the stage.

Copeland at Wooly’s, Nov. 18: There was a time in my life -- somewhere between learning everything I could about music in high school and thinking I knew everything about music in college (you know, typical growing up stuff) -- that I never thought I’d see Copeland play live. That changes this November. Come sing every word of “No One Really Wins” with me.